Identification

• Barracudas have elongated bodies designed for speed, with a lower jaw that projects outward past the top jaw. The mouth possesses razor sharp teeth and the barracuda has exceptional eyesight, with the area on the fish's head near the eyes almost flat. The top fins of the barracuda have a wide separation in comparison to most other types of fish and the barracuda has a forked tail.
  
  

Geography

• The barracuda is at home in tropical ocean waters as well as in some temperate latitudes. The Pacific barracuda, for example, lives from California southwards to Panama, while the great barracuda lives across the globe, although rare in the eastern part of the Pacific Ocean. Barracudas like to reside in coral reefs and in saltwater flats. Most barracuda, although capable of being at greater depths, typically live close to the surface of the water.
  
  

Size

• The great barracuda is much larger than its relatives, such as the Pacific barracuda, a species that usually is less than two feet long. The Florida Museum of Natural History website says the record great barracuda caught on hook and line, as of this March 2010 writing, is a 103 lb. specimen that measured 5.5 feet long. Great barracudas that exceed 4.8 feet are large. In the wild, the great barracuda has an estimated lifespan of about 14 years.
  
  

Diet

• Barracuda eat a diet composed mostly of fish. The great barracuda will devour species such as grunts, snappers, groupers, tuna, mullets, herrings and anchovies. The teeth of the barracuda and the size of its mouth allow it to chew right through large fish, cutting them in half so the fish can swallow them. The barracuda has exceptional speed and hunts by sight, attacking its prey swiftly.
  
  

Warning

• Although the barracuda, especially the great barracuda, is more than capable of inflicting serious damage to a human being, attacks by these fish on people are not common. Barracuda often will accompany snorkelers and divers as they swim beneath the surface. Any attacks that do occur are possibly because the fish mistakes shiny jewelry or objects such as diving knives for fish. Two documented deaths from great barracudas did happen, with one in 1947 near Key West, Florida and the other 10 years later off the North Carolina coast.